Halone Guide My Hand
by ShimoRyu
Summary: This is the tale of an Ishgardian Noble. One who fled from his home upon comitting what he believed to be the greatest crime, the greatest sin. (Nothing to do with dragon's blood, no he believed it to be far worse than even that). This is the tale of an Elezen, who seeks to forget his past, forge through the present, and see a more forgiving future. (Rating might go up)


The wind blew gently through the greenery of The Black Shroud where Seraphiaux sat. The deep blue sky above was but barely visible through the canopy here, but that was alright. He did not wish to see the stars which would surely call his heart ever more homeward. Sadly, the Elezen laid his body down, making a feeble attempt to adapt to this new situation rather than accept the defeat his deeper thoughts desired trying to find some form of comfort in the rich, earthy scent of the dirt below, and the drying leaves that crackled with even the slightest movement. Trying to find peace in the sound of the branches blowing in the breeze above whose chorus rose to join with the birds in the twilight hour. Yet despite all his efforts nothing would bring the peace he so desperately craved. Not even the movements and chatter of the adventuring party he had joined as they scampered around the campsite could bring a smile to the man's face. He was homesick. Homesick of a land he choose to run from for all the right reasons in his mind, and yet some stupid desire, against his better judgement, kept welling up and calling his heart homeward.

He had been mostly ignored by the rest of his party thus far, though attention was drawn to him with his sigh, shown only by the twitching of the Miqo'te Archer's ears. She chose not to approach him however, choosing to leave him to his thoughts for now. The only reason she had stood was to collect the pile of wood and basket of berries the former noble had brought back. Seraphiaux genuinely hoped those were to the other's liking. He'd bled for those berries.

Around the growing campfire sat the other two members of the party he had joined. The Hyur's sword and shield rested against the stump he sat on. He seemed to be good natured for a fighter like himself. A good leader always lending an ear to the others, and laughing at the stories being told by the Lalafell who was currently waving his staff to form pictures in the flames. The Archer was laughing along too as she set about with the camp cooking for the night, though it was only after all were pleasantly enjoying their meal that she approached Seraphiaux. Her green eyes shining with optimism and life.

' _Like his once did…'_

Quickly she shoved the plate of meat and berries in her hands at the man. A light smile gracing her face.

"Ye 'ave to eat somethin other than saltwater, friend, look at you! Jus' skin and bones!"

Seraphiaux only nodded then, as he took the plate from her hands. He stared at the food for a few moments before plucking a berry up. It was sweet but not overly so, mildly surprising but quite a pleasant taste.

"Hmm… Not a talkative lot, are ye?" She only got a shake of the head in response, to which she nodded back. "That's right okay! Ain't gonna make you talk if ye don't want ta! ...At least let me introduce our crew to ye? Th' name's S'ehka Rahki! The Lala with a hankerin' for ice spells over yonder is Donorika Monorika, and our 'fearless leader' over 'ere is Drei Bloodthorn. A'ight, I know ye don't like flappin' yer gums much and I'll leave you be soon, but can I at least ask yer name? It's good ta know who we're adventuring with, eh?"

The Elezen paused. Should he truly give his real name out so easily to someone he hardly knew? If they became well-known then what if the wrong people learned it? Oh but what did it matter? Adventuring groups like this required some degree of trust. A partial name would do. "Seraphiaux. Just… Seraphiaux."

"No last name?" S'ehka question with a tilt of her head, as Seraphiaux shook his.

"None of importance to me," he forced a faint smile after that as he continued to speak. "Though if you need a shorter version to that mouthful, simply Sera will do."

"Sera it is!" The Miqo'te cheered out, striking a joyful pose. "I'll leave you ta think, now, but don't hesitate ta join us by the fire, eh?"

And as S'ehka walked away, Seraphiaux couldn't help but stare. His icy eyes slowly brimming with tears.

' _By The Fury… She's- she's so much like him…'_

* * *

"Seraph, what's wrong? You've gone so quiet."

Seraphiaux shook his head as he heard the young Hyur speak. Dressed in garb similar to the other brume folk, his dear friend would never know he was a noble at all. His name had been the lamest cover he'd ever thought of, but that was of no consequence to him. It was stupidly unlikely that any of the nobility he knew would ever come here.

And besides, the folk here in The Brume were all more open than those of The Pillars Society.

"I was just… Thinking. Don't worry about it Edward!" came the boy's quick reply, a bright smile swiftly replacing the frown there only seconds prior.

"Ha! 'Don't worry about it' says the dear, little Seraph!" the Hyur replied with a good natured laugh. "Come on, we both know ya overthink more than most kids, 'specially around here. So go on, what's got ya caught up in things again?"

Seraphiaux just sighed at Edward. Damn his perceptiveness that wasn't anything that could be hidden all that easily. "It really isn't the sort of talk for times like this where we're just hanging out," he murmured, beginning to play with the cards in his Astrologian deck.

With a smile Edward rose to his feet, bending down slightly and offered a hand to his friend. "Then come walk with me, I don't want ya to get lost in whatever yer mind is chasin'. Not good for ya at all, friend."

Another sigh fell from the Elezen as he took the other's hand and got to his feet. There was no way Seraphiaux was going to win this one.

They walked in silence for sometime through the place, past scaffolding shelters and piles of firewood, through the residents living out their lives, and the children playing with one another in the snow. Despite the hardships he knew the people of The Brume faced, Seraphiaux always felt at peace there. There was little gossip about people around there like there was up in the Pillars. The instant you fell out of line there, everyone knew. Up in the realm of nobility, life was all about keeping up the appearances your family held. Here, many worked together to survive. They looked after one another, formed a sort of camaraderie. And knowing that well, there was only one thing Seraphiaux wished for.

"Do you ever… Just look around at this place and want to do more?" He questioned cautiously of his friend as they continued walking.

"Only every damned day!" Edward exclaimed. "Is that was all yer thinkin' was about?"

A simple nod was Seraphiaux's response to that. "I… Want to do more. Help as much as I can and maybe change the way things are. Not just in the Brume, but the whole of Ishgard…" A soft sigh fell from the young Elezen as he spoke. "But… I'm just me. Yes, I managed to somehow get to learn the arts of Astrologians to learn to heal people and read fate, but what else can I do? How else can I help when I am only one boy?"

"I'm gonna correct ya, my friend," Edward replied with a bright grin as he placed an arm around Seraphiaux's shoulder. " _Two boys!_ Like I'm gonna leave ya to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders all on your lonesome? I'd sooner go right to the Seventh Hell than do that!"

A genuine smile spread across Seraphiaux's face at his friend's words, and with a nod he copied what Edward had done and placed a arm around his friend's shoulder. The two continued their walk just like that, smiles unyielding all the while despite the scenery around them. The scenery they had made their plan to one day bring change to.

"One step at a time though!" Edward said gleefully. "You can't expect it to happen over night now, can ya? Gotta take it one step at a time, and make the effort!"

* * *

"One step at a time to change…" Seraphiaux muttered softly as his mind came back to present. Staring down at the half-eaten plate of food in his hands, the Elezen closed his eyes, carefully steeling his resolve. Then he stood and slowly walked over to the fire, looking for a place next to S'ehka to sit. Though upon seeing she was perched upon a low branch, he quickly opted for the ground next to Drei's tree stump instead.

"I hope you don't mind me joining the stories," Searphiaux said quietly, glancing up just slightly at the Gladiator leader.

"Not at all," Drei replied in a welcoming tone, then grinned. "Donorika here was just telling us the most _amazing_ tale of how he once fought a Behemoth with only his Ice Casting."

"Hey! It's a true tale I assure you!" The Dunesfolk all but shrieked as the shape of the fire reverted to normal and he took to waving his staff around instead. "Froze its feet right to the ground, I did! Then one swift hit to the head with my staff and _dead!_ "

S'ehka just about fell off branch, cackling madly with laughter. "'illed a Beastie in one lil' blow with the ol' stick? With _them_ lil' sticks for arms? Ye couldn't lift a stabber, mate!"

"Why you!" Donorika shouted running towards the tree. The two continued their bickering all the while with the Lalafell at the base and S'ehka still giggling insanely from her perch. Drei could only manage to look at Seraphiaux with a smile and a shrug.

"You'll get used to their antics I'm sure. At least they have yet to murder each other? That should be a good thing, no? ...Though now that we've got an actual healer around I'm getting the feeling that holding them back from each other may have just gotten more diff-" the conversation was immediately cut off the instant Drei saw something out of the corner of his eye. A terrifying sight which proved that argument quite swiftly. "Oi! S'ehka! Drop the bow!"

And as the Highlander leapt up from his seat Seraphiaux could only grin ever-so-slightly. In regards to keeping spirits up and letting go of the past, for better or worse, it seemed as if he had found just the right group.

* * *

I forgot how to do page breaks here so hopefully this'll do. (oh lloks like I remembered!) Anyway lookie! I wrote something again! This is the start of a backstory fic for an FFXIV OC of mine. DEFINITELY going to be canon and lore divergent. Will have both lore conforming details and headcanon details! ...Ties into my main fic though that I have in planning in some ways so a lot of details may seem off, but I will always put lore changes/headcanon notes at the end of chapters.

Also, this is a non-WoL main character so no echo stuff. Just (mostly) normal Elezen healer. ...I'll be applying warnings to later chapters just to be safe but on that note, thanks for reading! :)


End file.
